“You’re used to it, aren’t you,
girl?” he hopefully, rhetorically
asked the five-year-old Chocolate

Lab who joined the couple two
week’s ago making another family
after their last Lab died six-months-

ago. She slept on the big, red chair
in the great room in the aftermath
of a family disagreement (read

fight) about something that went
wrong with springtime cleaning the
backyard pond. After reading page

197 of the latest mystery, he look-
ed up and stared into her closed
eyes and said, mostly to himself,

“I’m so sorry you had to hear me
shouting, girl. I know you need
peace and quiet after undergoing

giving birth to a litter, traveling
north, being spayed and staying
in two foster homes before com-

ing here to the praise and laud-
ation of Lab rescue workers.”
He looked down at the book, flip-

ped the page and looked forward
to the denouement of the mystery
hoping he hadn’t done too much

more damage to the girl who slept
apparently peacefully on the big,
red chair in the great room.